Epic Sandwich: Crave's New York Pastrami Sandwich

I was relieved when I discovered there was no wait for a table at Crave in the Galleria last weekend. Crazed holiday shoppers were scraping for spots in the parking lot and I figured getting a table would be no different.

I had a serious hankering for pastrami and was excited when our server confirmed that their take on the deli classic was good. Their sandwich ($10 in a combo) comes on caraway rye, with pepper jack cheese and sliced red onion. Classic pastrami is brined, spiced and smoked, yielding a nice balance of fat, spice and salt. The meat was tender and salty, but despite the "hot" claim on the menu, I found the meat lacking the signature spice. Thankfully, the bread was heavy on the caraway while the pepper jack added a kick to help bridge the void. Sliced red onion will make your breath smell like hot garbage, but it also brought a needed bite to the sandwich. Now, if only they had some grainy mustard to tie the whole thing together.

Sandwich Rating: Good, not Great. This sandwich certainly had its flaws, and wouldn't impress your average New Yorker, but I did enjoy it. The spicy cheese and caraway rye were able to right a few of the wrongs, but there was definitely room for improvement.